A Belgian brewmaster will visit this year’s Peoria International Beer Festival, which runs from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday and from 1 to 8 p.m. Saturday at Exposition Gardens in Peoria.

Jef Versele, a sixth generation brewer and owner of Van Steenberge Brewery in Ertvelde, Belgium, will host a beer class from 7 to 8 p.m. during Friday’s event, which is billed as a quieter, more intimate time than Saturday’s large gathering. The class costs an additional $10, which includes a commemorative glass.

Versele will share five of the brewery’s beers and talk about issues such as brewing techniques, environmental issues in the brewing process and beer-food pairings — he says Gulden draak with bleu cheese is “the best combination in the world,” and the strong dark ale also makes a fantastic sauce for meat. He’ll also talk about what it was like to grow up in a family that loved and appreciated fine beer.

“(It) was always great to spend time with my grandfather in the brewery. (He was) a man full of passion for his brewery, with a quiet personality,” Versele wrote by email this week. “When he was speaking, everybody was paying full attention. I will never forget that his love for beer was very big.”

The Gulden draak, an 11 percent alcohol beer, has a rating of 94 out of 100 on the Beer Advocate website. While Belgian beer is known to be some of the world’s top (the country’s beer-making history goes back centuries) it’s also fairly creative; brewmasters were experimenting with techniques like barrel aging long before the U.S. craft beer industry took off.

“It is impressive what is happening with craft beer in the U.S.A.,” Versele sais by email. “The beers are getting better and better. ... You still have a lot of extreme beer but you are finding more and more well-balanced beers that have very nice aromas.”

The event Friday is a fundraiser for Greater Peoria Honor Flight, and attendance is limited to 1,000 people. Tickets are $20 each, which includes a punch card for samplings of food from local restaurants.

On Saturday, admission is $18 at the door. The day will include concession stands featuring Hickory River Smokehouse pulled pork, German American Society pretzels and other foods.

There will also be live music from Comatose Catfish, Zack Linley and the Rebel Dare Devils, and Whiskey Rodgers Galactic String Band.

Beer tickets on both Friday and Saturday are $1 each, with most beers requiring 1 ticket per 4 oz tasting.

For more information, visit Peoriabeerfest.com.

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If you go

►What: 22nd annual Peoria Jaycees International Beer Festival, with more than 250 beers. Commemorative glasses for the first 4,000 guests.

►When: 1-8 p.m. April 12.

►Where: Exposition Gardens, 1601 W. Northmoor Road, Peoria.

►Cost: $18 at the door or $15 in advance at John S. Rhodell Brewery, Friar Tuck Beverage and online at www.peoriabeerfest.com. Beer tickets are $1 each.

►Friday night event: A smaller, quieter beer tasting event from 6 to 10 p.m. April 11 at Exposition Gardens. Features more than 100 brews along with appetizers from local restaurants. Live music from the Corn Wolves. Cost: $20, which includes souvenir glass and food. Beer tickets are $1 each. Fifty percent of the proceeds benefit Greater Peoria Honor Flight. A beer class with Belgian brewmaster Jef Versele runs from 7 to 8 p.m. and is an additional $10 (includes commemorative glass).

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Danielle Hatch can be reached at 686-3262 or dhatch@pjstar.com. Follow her on Twitter @danielle_hatch.